SynthesisBMJ paediatrics open2026
Drawing and visual art interventions for anxiety in children aged 5-12: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.
Synthesis in BMJ paediatrics open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo evaluate the effects of drawing- and visual art-based interventions on anxiety in children aged 5-12 years and to examine variation across comparator structures and settings.
methodsPubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, ERIC, DOAJ and China National Knowledge Infrastructure were searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs). Postintervention anxiety was the primary outcome and was pooled as standardised mean differences. Trials using non-art or usual-care comparators and those using active art comparators were synthesised separately. Risk of bias was assessed using RoB 2.
results10 RCTs involving 816 children were included. The primary meta-analysis included eight trials with non-art or usual-care comparators conducted in medical or procedure-related contexts. Drawing- and visual art-based interventions were associated with lower short-term anxiety compared with these controls (SMD=-2.70, 95% CI -3.73 to -1.68; I²=96%). Leave-one-out sensitivity analyses and exclusion of studies at high risk of bias did not materially change the direction of the effect although heterogeneity remained substantial. Two school-based trials used active art-based comparators and were synthesised separately.
conclusionDrawing- and visual art-based interventions may reduce short-term anxiety mainly in acute medical or procedure-related contexts. Because heterogeneity was substantial and school-based evidence used different comparator structures, the current evidence does not support a single generalisable effect across paediatric settings. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD420261288781.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.